If you haven’t been living under a rock for the last month, you’ve most likely heard the buzz on social media (especially Tiktok) about “Satan Shoes” and pole dancing into the depths of hell. Montero Lamar Hill, more commonly known as Lil Nas X, took the world by storm on March 26 with the release of the official music video for his hit single “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”. In an interview with Genius Lyrics, Lil Nas X explains where the inspiration for the title/chorus came from: the acclaimed queer coming-of-age film starring Timothee Chalamet and Armie Hammer, “Call Me By Your Name”. Although popular conservative personalities like Candace Owens did not react well to the content of this music video, I found myself in awe over the backgrounds, costumes, and overall presentation. It looked like something straight out of a high-budget movie and had a similar feel to Cassandra Clare’s “Mortal Instruments” book series.
The biblical references in the lyrics and video were interpreted by most viewers as inspired by the singer-songwriter’s sexuality and the homophobia he and other people in the queer community have experienced. The music video begins with Lil Nas X’s voice speaking about how in this world (the world of this music video), people are free to be themselves. “Montero” starts right out with the religious references as we see Lil Nas X in what seems to be The Garden of Eden, where Adam and Eve were said to face temptation in the Old Testament’s Book of Genesis. Like in the original story, Eve (portrayed by Lil Nas X), succumbs to temptation in the form of a serpent.
The following scene shows Lil Nas X in a colosseum wearing a pink wig and in chains, surrounded by duplicates of him, judging him. This historical reference has several layers, not only taking its inspiration from people being stoned to death by the masses for their beliefs but also incorporating symbolism related to gender identity and internalized homophobia. I didn’t even see this meaning until I looked more into it; the people judging Lil Nas X in the pink are dressed in blue attire, possibly alluding to the struggle between masculinity and femininity, specifically how queer men face bigotry for expressing their femininity. It’s also worth noting that the masses, judgemental people, and the judged, are all played by Lil Nas X. Overcoming homophobia is an internal battle almost as much as external, a truth many queer people have come to know. On Twitter, Lil Nas X posted a note to his younger self in which he discussed how he never wanted to be “that type of gay person” and didn’t even plan on coming out. This scene symbolizes the internal struggle surrounding sexuality and the decision around letting your true self show or suppressing it.
The colosseum scene comes to an end when a butt plug—yes, a butt plug—hits Lil Nas X in the pink and kills him. He begins his ascension to heaven, but then seems to change his mind and the most iconic scene of the video begins: the stripper pole hell scene. Lil Nas X descends into hell on a stripper pole, showing off his impressive pole dancing skills and a pair of tall black boots which I will be looking for online in the coming weeks. He’s seen seducing the devil himself and then killing him, only to take his crown and release the “darkness” within himself as he unfolds a pair of black wings. From the succumbing to temptation in the first scene to the “letting out one’s darkness” at the very end, the message of this video seems to be about the exploration of one’s sexuality and being oneself, even if that may make one a “sinner” in the eyes of religion.
A music video like this takes a lot of bravery to publish, and Lil Nas X reacted to the outrage and controversy that followed as always; with calm and humorous tweets. Candace Owens, conservative commentator, had a lot to say about the Satan Shoes that followed the drop of the music video. The shoes sold out in less than a minute and apparently had a drop of human blood in each pair’s sole (Nike is currently suing Lil Nas X because the shoes are modified Nike shoes with the Nike logo, which they didn’t have permission to use). Owens took to twitter to post a tweet saying, “We’ve turned George Floyd, a criminal drug addict, into an icon. We are promoting Satan Shoes to wear on our feet. We’ve got Cardi B named as woman of the year. But we’re convinced it’s white supremacy that’s keeping Black America behind. How stupid can we be?” Lil Nas X quickly clapped back with tweets like, “don’t care and ur a flop,” “call me by your name outsold,” and “you know you did something right when she talks about it.”
Youtube and Tiktok were also flooded with videos of conservatives and religious people reacting to the video, calling it demonic, satanic, etc. I watched several of these videos, and many of them quickly turned homophobic and racist. However, Lil Nas X is staying unbothered and will continue to release jaw-dropping music for the world to enjoy. If religious people feel this is offensive or a bad influence on their children, they can simply not watch it. Lil Nas X fulfilled the purpose of art and is truly an inspiration for all the queer children in this world who feel ashamed to be who they are because they believe they will go to hell for being gay. At the end of the day, true art will always provoke an emotional reaction and give a different meaning to every person who consumes it.